12 Exceptional Comics About Trans and Genderqueer People
We live in a rich and wonderful time for LGBTQ comics, particularly comics about transgender and genderqueer people. It’s been a long time coming! Even when LGB people were starting to show up on the page, T and Q people were often notably absent. No longer! There’s some really amazing work out right now that covers trans issues, includes diverse characters, and is generally conscious and awesome. If you’re looking for some great trans and genderqueer comics in print, start here.
100 Crushes by Elisha Lim
Written in a looping handwritten script, this book is a series of meditative vignettes about LGBTQ people of all types, including genderqueer people. Like the best of us, this book never demands that the individuals it covers define themselves.
Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
There’s a lot to love about this autobiography. Maia’s struggle to assert eir pronouns is poignant and relatable. If you’ve ever had to come out twice, then you’ll appreciate the complications e experiences as e navigates eir family’s misunderstandings and misapprehensions.
Gumballs by Erin Nations
The really nice thing about this book is that Erin profiles other people on the LGBTQ rainbow. That, plus the vignettes about Erin’s life and transition, make this a true gumball machine of trans-inclusive joy.
How Loathsome by Ted Naifeh and Tristan Crane
Edgy and goth, this exploration of queer outsiderhood involves a ton of sex, drugs, and nightlife. It’s a gem for fans of dark, gritty art and messy personal drama.
Oath Anthology of New (Queer) Heroes, edited by Audrey Redpath
It’s all about the heroes! (And, to be honest, the romance too. There’s more than a touch of romance to these short comic stories.) Whether it’s a child choosing their preferred clothing or a trans man and a superhero bonding over their secret identities, this collection will dispatch your boredom like a laser beam through a cheap set piece.
On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden
This epic lost love/girls’ school drama (iiiinnnnnn spaaaaaaaace) features both genderqueerness and devoted fans. Mia works as a member of a crew that rebuilds giant, broken space structures, but her true motivations are more serious. She intends to find the love she lost…at any cost!
The Other Side: A Queer Paranormal Romance Anthology edited by Melanie Gillman and Kori Michele Handwerker
This book is not just about romance—it’s about spoooooky romance with queer couples and gender-neutral pronouns galore! As it is an anthology, you’re almost guaranteed to find a story and art style that suit you.
The Pervert by Michelle Perez and Remy Boydell
In the midst of her transition to female, a factory worker engages in the sex trade to raise money for hormones and nicotine gum. This is an unflinching look at one woman’s experiencing crossing the gender binary, complete with complications, pitfalls, and doubt.
Power & Magic: The Queer Witch Comics Anthology edited by Joamette Gil
While it is generally about female characters, this book includes a couple of transgender and genderqueer witches to enchant the savvy reader. After all, who says that only assigned-female people can be magical?
The Prince And The Dressmaker by Jen Wang
The dressmaker has talent. The prince has a secret. The two are destined to become co-conspirators in a scandal that could rock the ailing aristocracy of Europe…or set its fashion landscape on fire!
A Quick and Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns by Archie Bongiovanni and Tristan Jimerson
This lightening-quick read should be a standard text in all life skills classes. It’s basically a primer on they/them pronouns for cisgender people told by a genderqueer person and their ally buddy.
The Spire by Simon Spurrier and Jeff Stokely
Sha, Commander of the Spire’s City Watch, gets word from the new Baroness: there’s a high-profile murder she needs to solve. If she doesn’t, she’ll lose her job—and maybe more. In a world where humanoid skews face discrimination even as they attempt to pass among “normal” people, the job quickly gets more complicated than Sha anticipated.
